Many people ask me, “Why would I want to switch from my swamp cooler to refrigerated air? What are the pluses and minuses?” This is a pretty easy question to answer.
Problems Associated with Swamp Coolers
Swamp coolers will cool your house, but they can also be kind of problematic. Here are three ways they can cause problems.
- Sometimes the water from a swamp cooler will run off your roof and damage it.
- When it gets a certain temperature like that hundred-degree weather we get once in a while in the summer, it may not cool your home as much as you want. A good swamp cooler in a house that is fairly well-insulated and well-constructed is only going to drop the temperature of your house 15 degrees lower than it is outside. So whenever it hits a hundred degrees or 102 or 103 outside, your house is going to be 84, 85 or 86 degrees on the inside, and that’s not as comfortable as I like.
- What they also do is pull air from the outside into your house. If you’re allergic to anything, this outside air can aggravate your allergies. Or if there’s dust in the air—and since we live in New Mexico there usually is—a swamp cooler is going to bring that dust inside your home. A swamp cooler system is just not as clean as a refrigerated air system.
What You Need to Know about Refrigerated Air Systems
When you have a refrigerated air system, it recirculates the air in your house. The air is pulled out, sent to the refrigerant and then goes right back into your home. You can also have a good filter system to keep that air clean.
There’s also a difference in how much the temperature will drop in your house with a refrigerated system. In truth, if your house is well-insulated, you can get the temperature inside down to 65 degrees in your house, even in the heat of summer. You would need to make sure your refrigerated system is the right size for the square footage of your house.
About the Costs of a Refrigerated Air System
A refrigerated system will cost more to install than a swamp cooler. Some people say it uses more electricity than a swamp cooler. I am sure it does, but not a lot more.
But you also save money on your water bill. A swamp cooler will go through thousands and thousands of gallons of water every season. Therefore, you save some on your water bill, and you pay a little bit more on your electric bill.
All in all, most people who have refrigerated air systems are happier than people who have swamp coolers. If you’re thinking about switching, please give Rocketman Plumbing a call and we’ll come by and give you a free estimate to get it switched over for you.